Graduating in the Middle of a Pandemic
January, 2018
In a lab class required for all life science majors at UCLA, we studied epidemiology. The experiment involved transferring bacteria through handshakes. One person started with the bacteria and was considered “patient zero”. By the end of the lab, nearly the entire class was “infected.” By random chance, I was patient zero.
Tuesday, March 3rd, 2020
I was walking through campus and overheard another student talking on the phone trying to reassure a loved one about her trip to Italy. “It’s not even in the same area. We won’t be partying. It’ll be fine.”
Monday, March 9th
I overheard another student on the phone. “No Mom, I can’t go home. I still have classes. Nobody else is leaving, and I have finals to study for. They’re not going to cancel my finals for something like this.” I doubted that classes would be canceled, too.
Tuesday, March 10th
My friends were complaining that if UCSD could cancel their finals, why couldn’t we?
That night, I was studying for my neuroscience final when my phone started exploding with messages. Starting tomorrow, all classes and big events were canceled until April 10th. Our finals and the first two weeks of classes spring quarter would all be online. This was when the gravity of the situation finally started to hit home for me.
I had a lot of things to work out if everything was going online, like Hawai’i club, my research project, finals, and spring break plans. There was a lot up in the air, so I started to plan for the worst case scenario.
Thursday, March 12th
I started to get a sore throat, a headache, and had an overall feeling of exhaustion. I was afraid I’d somehow caught the virus.
Friday, March 13th
I woke up with a runny nose and realized that I’d caught the head cold that my roommate had. Nothing to worry about.
There was an announcement that classes for the entire spring quarter would be online and all students were encouraged to move out. It was also announced that Gene Block, the school Chancellor, was under quarantine after being in contact with an infected individual.
My roommates started to freak out, because everybody was leaving and we were graduating. Who knew when we would be able to see each other again? I’ve never been good at goodbyes, so I decided to take my exit quietly, especially since I was still feeling sick.
Sunday, March 15th
Done with my finals and my cold virtually gone, I went home to find things relatively close to normal, except the news was on 24/7 and there was an aura of fear that had never been there before.
My mom and I talked for a little bit with our neighbors, an elderly couple in their 80s. It was then that I realized how grave things must look for them. They were scared, but they still had hope that the suburbs were safe. I hope it stays that way.
Later that night I found out that all the restaurants in LA had closed for sit down meals and were takeout only.
Monday, March 16th
I had a meeting with the facilities managers for our Luau event for Hawaii Club (an event that’s supposed to have around 500 people in attendance). We decided to email our club members with a poll to either have a virtual Luau or to simply postpone to next year.
Tuesday, March 17th
A UCLA student tested positive for COVID-19.
My friends and I were getting called out as selfish for still going on a spring break trip, so we canceled our plans.
Wednesday, March 18th
LA county initiated a “Stay at Home” advisory effective at midnight.
UCLA graduation got canceled. My roommate cried. Students started signing a petition to have it postponed instead. Gene Block issued an apology for not consulting students before making his decision to cancel graduation.
Student volunteers weren’t allowed to go into lab anymore. If I couldn’t go in, I couldn’t analyze any data, so I couldn’t finish the project I’d spent months working on. I had to rework my project into a literature review, instead.
My friend messaged me about whether she could get away with not paying rent considering the times. She went home, and it was a lot to pay rent for a place she was no longer living in, especially since so many people aren’t getting paid these days. I felt thankful that my dad, my sister, and I can still work through this madness.
Thursday, March 19th
Italy’s death toll overtook China’s.
I had an argument with my mom about going back to school. She was afraid she’d lose me if I went back, but for me, being home made me feel like I’d lost both my autonomy and productivity. If I was to survive classes being completely online, I would do much better in my apartment at school than at home.
The news did a piece on college students who continue to party and go on their spring break trips, despite the virus. They interviewed a drunk guy at the beach in Florida who said that not even the coronavirus could keep him from partying. The news outlet spun it to look like the younger generation isn’t taking the situation seriously. They claimed that this virus was creating a generational divide. I looked at my parents and hoped they understood that the only thing creating this divide were the news outlets that decided one guy represented my entire generation.
I got a message from 2 of the jobs I had applied for. They were putting a pause on hiring due to the situation. A fear rose in my stomach that my friends and I wouldn’t be able to find jobs after we graduate. I was lucky to have my parents to support me, but many of my peers are reliant on finding a job after college to pay off their debts.
Friday, March 20th
I went for a drive with my parents down the Malibu coast. On the way, we bought a pie from Marie Calendar’s. It was my first time stepping into a restaurant since the closures. It was eerily quiet. I was glad my dad left a tip.
The beach was relatively crowded when we stopped to take a look. There were quite a few surfers out. I marveled at how patient they were, sitting and waiting for the perfect wave. Surfing is basically a religion for some people.
We went to Neptune’s Net and bought a few pints of clam chowder. There were people sitting in the parking lot, talking about the virus.
We drove down to Point Dume and took the trail to the top. I was surprised and a little aghast at how crowded it was there. We avoided the big groups and took the trails that less people were on. From the top, we watched several whales pass by.
It was a good day.
Saturday, March 21st
My dad went to Costco at 7:30 am and waited in line until it opened at 9:15. They were already out of toilet paper by the time he got inside.
I went back to school. My mom cried.
Sunday, March 22nd
I went on a walk with my roommate around the neighborhood. Quite a few families were out, too. It felt strangely normal.
Monday, March 23rd
Because the trails got so flooded with people over the weekend, the state of California closed most of them.
Tuesday, March 24th
A teenager in LA County died, possibly marking the first death of a minor from coronavirus in the United States.
I ordered pizza from Dominos. The delivery guy was handicapped and couldn’t make it up the front steps of the apartment. I hope he’s safe.
My roommate went to the post office and brought us back some boba. We watched a feel-good movie together and tried to relax.
Wednesday, March 25th
Spain’s death toll overtook China’s.
Whenever one of my roommates left the apartment, they immediately showered when they got back. I have yet to leave the apartment complex since my walk on Monday.
I attempted an online ballet barre class. I hit my shin on a chair quite hard. Maybe ballet isn’t the best sport to do in a cramped apartment.
Thursday, March 26th
Another job I applied to got back to me saying they were putting a pause on hiring due to COVID-19.
The United States surpassed China as the country with the highest number of coronavirus cases.
I finished Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. A lot of people were making parallels between the quarantine and Anne Frank’s experience, saying that if she can last 2 years in a confined space, so can we.
I started rereading the Harry Potter books. A little bit of magic helped to lift my spirits.
Saturday, March 28th
The US became the first country to exceed 100,000 cases.
Monday, March 30th
Online classes for spring quarter started.
I decided to drop my Matlab class, because my computer couldn’t support the software that I needed to do the homeworks.
Thursday, April 2nd
Coronavirus cases worldwide exceeded one million.
Friday, April 3rd
A Malibu surfer got arrested for surfing at a closed beach. I thought about how I was watching the surfers a week ago.
Saturday, April 4th
I practiced the hula dances for Luau. It felt good to dance again, but I was sore the next day.
At 11pm the power went out for the whole block. People stood on their balconies and started screaming. Others walked onto the street and started wandering around. A group of very drunk guys quite badly sang Elton John and Queen songs. I met my neighbors for the first time, yelling at each other from separate balconies.
I was mixing some paints to finally start painting again (after years of not having the time) when the power went out. I painted in the dark anyway and had to spend the next few days trying to fix the disaster I had blindly made.
Sunday, April 5th
My dad stopped by to bring more supplies. He sounded worried. I don’t blame him. He said he and my mom went on another drive up the Pacific Coast Highway and saw at least a hundred bikers hanging around Neptune’s Net. The beaches were closed, but that didn’t stop the crowds from gathering.
Wednesday, April 8th
I had a Zoom meeting with some friends. One of them was sitting in the dark and I asked why. He got laid off and was trying save money by not turning on the lights. He was also limiting himself to one meal a day. I’m worried about him.
Thursday, April 9th
I discovered that you can still smell the flowers through your face mask.
Friday, April 10th
The US exceeded 500,000 coronavirus cases.
Friday, April 17th
I subscribed to the New York Times to try to keep track of what’s going on. I was a little reluctant to read it, though, since most of the news seemed pretty disheartening.
Tuesday, April 22nd
There was a 3.2 magnitude earthquake. Small, but a little freaky with everything else going on.
Friday, April 24th
The US exceeded 50,000 coronavirus deaths, making up about a quarter of total coronavirus-related deaths in the world.
Americans protested the “safer at home” order, because of the impact it’s having on people’s livelihoods.
Tuesday, April 28th
The pentagon confirmed that three videos of UFOs were real. I was somewhat surprised that there was so little reaction on the public’s part, but we have bigger fish to fry. Apparently a global pandemic takes precedence over evidence of aliens.
The US exceeded 1 million COVID-19 cases.
Saturday, May 2nd
“Murder Hornets” were the newest obstacle in this series of unfortunate events. The Asian Giant Hornet was spotted in Washington state. They pose a very serious threat to honeybees, not to mention that they have a pretty nasty sting.
Monday, May 4th
I presented my research project to my lab. I think it went decently okay. It’s weird presenting over Zoom, since I couldn’t see the audience at all.
Wednesday, May 6th
I finished Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and had a heated discussion with my roommates over what I think is a major plot hole (I won’t share it in case I spoil the book for anyone).
Thursday, May 7th
I heard a rumor that Trump caught the coronavirus. I don’t think it was true.
Friday, May 8th
Some businesses, trails, and beaches in California started to open again. We haven’t exactly flattened the curve yet, so a lot of people are concerned that we’re opening up too early.
My roommates and I went onto campus and took graduation pictures. People were treating UCLA campus like a park, having picnics in the grass.
Unemployment was at it’s highest since the Great Depression. I don’t think I’ll be finding a job anytime soon.
Monday, May 11th
I had a dream that the quarantine had ended, and I went on a hike alone in the mountains. There was a stream that I waded into to feel the cool water against my legs. It got deeper and deeper, until I was surrounded by humongous but beautiful sea creatures. I didn’t want the dream to end.
Tuesday, May 12th
I celebrated a quarantine birthday. It started at midnight when my roommates pulled out a decadent chocolate cake. My parents drove by in the afternoon with presents and cookies and another of my friends visited with wine and cake and sang happy birthday on her ukulele. My aunt and cousins drove over later with a “Happy Birthday” sign hanging off of their car. They brought dinner, more presents, and more cookies. I felt loved.
Friday, May 15th
I went on another walk. I need to start doing those more often. My butt hurt from sitting for hours and hours for days on end.
Saturday, May 16th
My roommate and I watched an online graduation ceremony. We didn’t realize that it would be aimed at high school graduates, but Malala and Obama gave some really good speeches.
Monday, May 17th
New cases in the US started to decline.
Sunday, May 24th
The New York Times published 1,000 names of covid-19 victims and their stories to mark the US approaching 100,000 deaths.
Monday, May 25th
Four Minneapolis police officers were caught on video taking part in killing a black man, George Floyd. He died with a knee pressed to his neck.
Wednesday, May 27th
The US officially hit 100,000 covid-related deaths.
Thursday, May 28th
The death of George Floyd sparked an outrage, and protests erupted across the US over police violence. Many of these protests turned into riots.
Friday, May 29th
My social media erupted with posts and videos about police violence and Black Lives Matter. People were sharing some very gruesome details and disturbing videos about what was happening with the protests.
Los Angeles issued a curfew that seemed to change by the hour. All of this happening with the backdrop of a still-present pandemic felt like Armageddon.
Saturday, May 30th
SpaceX successfully launched a spacecraft. I think a lot of people were jealous of the astronauts getting to leave the mess that is the earth behind for at least a little while.
Riots broke out in Santa Monica amidst the protesting. The National Guard had been patrolling in tanks around my neighborhood. There was another curfew.
Sunday, May 31st
It was about 4:15pm when I decided to go for a walk, but then I got an Amber Alert about another curfew. It said there was a Beverly Hills curfew scheduled for 4:00pm. My roommate got an alert at the same time that said LA county curfew was scheduled for 6:00pm. The police were arresting people for being out past curfew, but nobody seemed to know when curfew was, and if my alert was correct, it warned me 15 minutes too late. I did not go for a walk that day.
Monday, June 1st
A Westwood protest was scheduled for 4pm, but the police changed the curfew and the protest was canceled. Anybody who showed up for the protest was arrested on the spot.
Tuesday, June 2nd
I may have found a job. It might only be part time and it’s in no way related to neuroscience or research, but hey, it’s something.
Thursday, June 4th
I finished my last final. One more paper and then I’m done with UCLA.
Curfew orders were lifted, so my parents came and helped me move some furniture out of the apartment. Our lease is ending and I’m moving back home.
There was a UCLA protest.
The chancellor sent out an apology, because UCLA had lent the Jackie Robinson Stadium to LAPD, who then used the space to process protest arrests. There’s so much irony in that they used a stadium, named after the first black MLB player, to arrest people fighting for African American rights.
Friday, June 5th
I went on a walk with a friend through the UCLA botanical garden. Flowers are always good therapy. We walked through town for the first time since the protests started. The windows of most of the shops boarded up to prevent looting.
Saturday, June 6th
I went grocery shopping with my roommates. We drove past national guard soldiers patrolling up and down the streets. The grocery store was boarded up, and you could only enter through the parking lot. There were signs saying face masks were mandatory and intermittent announcements reminding us to stand at least 6 feet away from the closest person. I’d almost forgotten about the pandemic with all the protests going on.
Monday, June 8th
I got more details about the job. It’s full time and I think I might really enjoy it.
Friday, June 12th
Graduation day. I was sitting alone on the floor of the apartment trying to deconstruct my bed frame when the graduation ceremony started. Despite all my best efforts, I couldn’t help but feel sad. I didn’t want to be alone on a day that was meant to be filled with friends and family and celebration.
Things got better in the evening. We broke some quarantine rules and spent the night grilling kebabs, eating cupcakes, and drinking sangria with friends.
In this pandemic, there’s a delicate balance between physical and mental health. You can stay physically healthy by cutting off the rest of the world, but what does that do to your emotions? I’m afraid of the ramifications that this pandemic will have for a lot of people, not just the ones who get sick.
Saturday, June 13th
I moved back home, and quarantined myself to the guest bedroom for two weeks. Every time I left the room, I was wearing a mask. I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if I’d somehow gotten my parents sick.
Monday, June 15th
I started training for the new job.
Wednesday, June 17th
My dad went to New York to move his belongings out of his apartment there. His job is now remote, so he doesn’t need to live in New York anymore.
I started watching Game of Thrones with my mom. It is yet another good distraction.
Monday, June 22nd
My dad came back from New York and started quarantining as well.
Saturday, June 27th
My quarantine ended, and the first thing I did was hug my mom.
Friday, July 3rd
My dad’s quarantine ended.
Saturday, July 4th
I spent most of the 4th of July working. We were hosting an entrepreneurial summit for high schoolers, and I had to be on call to supervise the event. It was both amazing and refreshing to see all the creative ideas that high schoolers have come up with. All of the presentations I watched were centered around helping people in some capacity. I wondered where all that compassion goes when we grow up.
My mom and I watched a New York fireworks display on TV. I realized that TV fireworks are pretty boring.
We ate warm peach pie with heaping scoops of vanilla ice cream. That felt more like the 4th of July than anything else that day.
Sunday, July 5th
My mom approached me in the morning asking if I also thought the pie from the night before was tasteless. I had her sniff a candle and we realized that she couldn’t smell or taste anything sweet or salty. We looked into where she could get a covid test.
Monday, July 6th
My mom waited for four hours to get a telehealth appointment so she could get a coronavirus test.
Friday, July 10th
The US set the seventh single-day record in new cases within the past eleven days.
Monday, July 13th
My mom’s coronavirus test finally came back. It was negative.
The Trump administration started criticizing Fauci, the US’s top infectious disease expert.
Tuesday, July 14th
Reopening in California was reversed due to the drastic increase in cases. For every step forward, we’re taking two steps back.
Thursday, July 16th
My mom talked to my neighbor, who thinks the entire pandemic is a government hoax. I guess it is a little hard to believe if you don’t know anybody who’s gotten sick. I don’t think she realizes how lucky she is.
Saturday, July 18th
My date might be wrong, but some time over the weekend, federal forces were deployed to Portland to crush protests.
Tuesday, July 21st
The US faced the highest death toll in one day since May.
I saw a headline about polar bears going extinct and couldn’t help but feel sad for the rest of the day. I feel like the world is tumbling out of control and there is nothing I can do to slow the tumble.
Thursday, July 23rd
I went on an evening hike with my family to try to see the NEOWISE comet. We climbed to the top of a peak and stood for an hour staring at the spot the comet should be and saw nothing but airplanes. I don’t know if the moon was too bright, the sky was too hazy, or if we’d somehow messed up the timing. At least it was a good hike.
Thursday, July 30th
I got jolted awake at 4am by a magnitude 4.2 earthquake, and again at 6am by a magnitude 3.9.
Saturday, August 15th
A heatwave began in California with no foreseeable end according to the news.
The freak weather also led to several lightning storms that ignited catastrophic fires.
Sunday, August 16th
I drove with my parents to Malibu to try to find a spot on the beach. The only place we could find that wasn’t so crowded required a bit of rock climbing to get to. I had fun climbing around.
Thursday, August 20th
I was pleasantly surprised with how well Biden spoke at the Democratic National Convention.
Saturday, August 22nd
The sky had an orange hue from all the fires. I could feel the impact of the smoke in my breathing. The closest fire was 30 miles away. I worried for those whose lungs have already taken quite a bit of damage this year.
Sunday, August 23rd
I went to the beach with my mom in a desperate effort to escape the heat. A lot of people had the same idea, and I was a bit worried about how crowded it was. There comes a point, though, where you have to cool off one way or another.
I had a small emotional breakdown at 1am. It’s incredible how isolated you can feel when you stop interacting with your peers.
Monday, August 24th
Riots broke out in Wisconsin over the shooting of another black man, Jacob Blake. I feel like that this is more of a “World-in-Turmoil” timeline than a “Pandemic” timeline.
I watched the Republican National Convention. A woman spoke about churches being forced to pay taxes to support abortion drugs, which are against their beliefs. A news reporter explained after the speech that she was referring to contraceptives. Please note that contraceptives are not abortion drugs. It scares me to see the country so split on politics. Both sides seem to be spewing out misleading lies in the process.
Sunday, September 10
Why is the pandemic a political debate? Why are politics involved in this at all? Why aren’t we listening to science? I don’t get it. I wanted to become a scientist because I thought I could make a positive impact on the world. This pandemic has proven me wrong. Apparently science isn’t enough to save anyone.
Sunday, September 18
Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away. I remembered watching her documentary not too long ago and realizing why it’s so important to be involved in society. If you’re not involved, nobody will readily hand your rights to you on a platter. The only reason I’m sitting where I am is because women like her were able to pave the way. Albeit, I’m currently sitting on the floor of my childhood bedroom, but that’s more because of a pandemic than anything.
Monday, September 28
How can the president get away with only paying $750 in income tax? I don’t think that’s legal, right?
Wednesday, September 30
The debate… I don’t want to talk about it, but it was bad.
Thursday, October 1
I was sitting on the couch watching Netflix with my parents, when I got several texts all at once. I paused the show and told my dad to switch it to the news. Trump tested positive for the coronavirus and announced his positive test result in a Tweet of all things. I went to bed feeling uneasy about what this will mean.
Monday, October 5
Trump took quite the cocktail of experimental drugs to combat the virus.
The White House event in the rose garden to celebrate the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court is now being called a “superspreader” event.
Tuesday, October 20
I voted.
Wednesday, October 21
I took a break from work and we drove down to Oceanside. Even if I hadn’t taken off of work, I still would’ve felt a lot happier. It’s strange how a change in environment can reset your mental state, but I really needed it.
Saturday, October 31
Halloween. My favorite holiday. We watched The Nightmare Before Christmas and Scream to celebrate. We also ate way too much candy, but it’s a holiday, so the calories don’t count, right?
Tuesday, November 3
Election day. We still didn’t know who had won by the end of the day, because so many people voted by mail.
Monday, November 9
I think Biden won the election? It was close, and Trump is refusing to concede, suing several states, and claiming that the democratic party cheated.
Thursday, November 12
The US set a record with 160,000 new covid cases in one day.
Tuesday, November 17
Just as things were getting worse, there’s finally a light at the end of the tunnel: a vaccine, two to be accurate.
Thursday, November 26
I celebrated a small Thanksgiving with just me and my parents. Well . . . it was only small in the sense of the number of people attending. We went a little overboard with how much food we cooked and were eating leftovers for the next week.
Tuesday, December 8
Vaccine distribution started in Britain. The US is soon to follow. I don’t expect to get a vaccine until the summer, as I’m not an essential worker nor at high risk.
Wednesday, December 9
Another record in daily deaths in the US: 3,000 people gone.
Monday, December 14
Vaccinations started in the US.
The US death toll reached 300,000.
Saturday, December 19
I woke up at 5am with a head-splitting migraine. I’m still somewhat feeling it as I write this, but it’s been slowly fading since this morning.
Monday, December 21
I found out that there were no open beds at my local hospital. It’s completely full.
Tuesday, December 22
Some famous guy in my area started an anti-mask movement with a rather large following. This group goes around Christmas caroling without masks on.
The long-awaited stimulus bill was announced and received a lot of criticism. My friends were complaining that college students won’t get any support if their parents claimed them as dependents in 2019. Those who were claimed as dependents in 2018 didn’t get the previous stimulus check, so there’s debate as to who will qualify for this round. My guess is that I won’t qualify, but considering the situation I’m in, I’d rather the money go to somebody who needs it more than I do.
Friday, December 25
Christmas day. Got a lot of gifts. Gave a lot of gifts. Several other gifts are still on their way, lost somewhere in the mail system.
I received news of another friend catching covid.
Saturday, December 26
We met up with my cousins at the beach for a brief Christmas gift exchange. My parents had argued endlessly over whether or not we should meet with family for the holidays. We kept our distance and our masks on the entire time.
Friday, January 1, 2021
A new year began. At this point, the virus emerged over a year ago. There were over 1.8 million covid-related deaths worldwide. Many of my friends are still jobless. We never had a funeral for my grandpa because we couldn’t gather (not a covid-related death).
My family friend had a baby boy yesterday. Another of my friends started a business. I graduated from college. My sister got engaged and bought a house. At least it’s not all death.
Wednesday, January 6th
The morning started out pretty normal. The news was showing a group of pro-Trump protesters standing outside the capitol while Congress met to certify Biden as president, but these days, when weren’t protests happening. I thought nothing of it, went upstairs, and took a shower. I came down to find all the TVs in the house on to different news outlets and my dad running from room to room.
“They stormed the capitol,” he said.
“They what? Who? The US Capitol?” I wasn’t sure if I was comprehending the situation.
Trump supporters stormed the capitol. They stayed for several hours until they were finally cleared out. I know a lot of people were outraged and I completely understand that, but the only emotion I could feel was numbness. It was surreal. We learned how the capitol was burned down in my AP US History class in high school, but did I ever expect to witness anything like that?
In the past year, I’ve been trying to live a normal life among a global pandemic, raging fires, and political protests and riots. Sometimes I feel like I should be doing more to help people in some capacity, but the world’s such a mess I feel like I’ll barely make an impact.
Wednesday, January 13th
Trump made history as the first president to be impeached twice.
Tuesday, January 19th
The US topped 400,000 covid-related deaths.
Wednesday, January 20th
Inauguration day. I’m sure there were some protests but nobody stormed the capitol this time.
Saturday, January 23rd
I moved out from my parent’s house into a new apartment. The roommate was a friend of a friend and I hadn’t seen the apartment in person until the day I moved in. It was better than expected.
Now
I may update this post as more events unfold, but this is what has been happening so far. Please note that this is simply my experience through this outbreak.
